Replacing Fundamentalism... With What?

Like most people, I am becoming increasingly disturbed by the reports of
bombings, kidnappings and beheadings coming out of Iraq. The cities Falluja and
Ramadi and much of Anbar Province are now controlled by fundamentalist, Al-Qaeda
style militias.

I have asked myself why it is that I am so disturbed by the murderous methods
the militants use. We all know that this is war, and war means that there are two
sides that aim to eliminate each other. If we are honest with ourselves we would
have to admit that the military aircraft, the laser-guided missiles and the
Abrams tanks used by the Americans are more lethal and disturbing killing
machines than a masked man with a butcher knife. So what is it about these
anachronistic beheadings that offends us so much?

As a devoutly religious person, what bothers me more than anything else is
the fact that the beheadings are carried out as a form of religious ritual. One
of the films of such a murder is reported to show a man quoting passages from
the Koran ordaining death. "He who will abide by the Koran will prosper; he who
offends against it will get the sword..." And then as he performs the barbaric
act he and his partners shout "Allah akbar!" (G-d is great).

I know the intensity of the passion one feels when one is convinced that one
is carrying out the will of G-d. Seeing that same passion used in such an evil manner
terrifies me.

I often wonder what my contemporaries and I would be like if our teachers had
taught us that the only path to G-d is through the sword. I am convinced that at
least some of us would have accepted these barbaric teachings at face value and
would have become religious murderers. Maybe the fundamentalists are ordinary
people who have just been brainwashed by evil ideology.

We have to see this war for what it really has become -- a war of opposing
ideologies. On the one side is the Western idea of freedom, democracy and human
rights, and on the other side is a form of theocratic dictatorship where the religious
authorities are given a free hand in interpreting G-d's will. The question is
whether our democratic society can ever overcome an ideology that has the lethal cocktail
of religious zeal and murderous intent.

If this war is ever to be won, it has to be fought on two fronts. Certainly
when people have become terminally corrupted by lethal ideas, one may have no
choice but to eliminate the people who carry the ideas. However, at the same
time there has to be a sincere and strenuous effort to win over young people.
We must combat the ideas behind religious fundamentalism, and we can do this
only if we offer a coherent and equally attractive alternative.

Fundamentalist religion offers its adherents a framework in which to live. It
offers a protective brotherhood. But most of all, it adds a sense of meaning,
purpose and passion to the life of the adherent. All of the above -- a structured
framework, a brotherhood, a sense of meaning and a passion -- are things that
Western society lacks. How is Western-style democracy ever to replace the
dangerous type of Islamic fundamentalism if it is not fighting on the same turf?
The Kabbalists tell us that whatever G-d created in evil he created the exact
counterpart in good. One has to present young people with an alternative religious
ideology that offers the same qualities as fundamentalism but is aimed in a
peaceful direction.

Judaism is an example of this type of ideology. Judaism has a built-in sense
of community. It offers real direction and passion but the theme throughout is
peacefulness. As Maimonides writes (Mishneh Torah, Laws of Megillah 4:14), “G-d gave the Torah to
make peace in the world as it is written (Proverbs 3): ‘Its ways are pleasant
and all its paths are peaceful.’” According to the Talmud, a court of
law empowered to carry out the death penalty that executes a criminal more than once in
seventy years is considered a "murderous court." Throughout the Mishnah and
Talmud--which were formed during the rise of Christianity and Islam--you'd be hard-pressed to find a sage who is venerated for his physical battle against unbelievers. Judaism
preaches peacefulness; warmongers have no place.

Although there are parts of the Bible that if interpreted literally could
seem cruel and violent, our sages interpret them in a peaceful manner. For
example the Bible (Exodus 21:24) says that a violent attacker should pay "An eye
for an eye and a tooth for a tooth," but the sages don’t take this literally;
instead they say it means that the offender must pay the monetary worth of the
eye or the tooth. Another example is the law (Deuteronomy 21:18-21) regarding
the stoning of the rebellious child. Instead of widening the definition of a
rebellious child, our sages narrowed it, to the extent that it is virtually
impossible for the law ever actually to be applied. Many Biblical laws can be
interpreted either as a license for violence or in a peaceful manner. Rabbinic
Judaism exemplifies how potentially violent laws can be interpreted in a
civilized and peace-loving way. In Judaism, killing and religion are as far
apart from one another as the number one is from infinity. It is this peaceful
model that we should be exporting.

Secularism is doubtless dominant in the West. But this may be because the
religion that is currently offered lacks passion and attractiveness. What will
happen if a new generation of religious demagogues rises up, passionately
arguing a negative fundamentalist line? We may end up with another crusade on our
hands. The only way to avert such a disaster is to offer an alternative peaceful
religious model that has real meaning as well as purpose and passion. Let us
hope that those directing the war realize this. The future is still in our
hands. Let us shape it while we are still able.

As a Torah Jew I read this week's parsha with a question about the difference between the two stories as well as the sudden change in the genealogy table you'll see the same thing in Parshat Breishit as well. G-d destroys the entire human race for the cruel crimes of their day. and he points in the 2nd genealogy that Cush fathers a son Nimrod [rebeller] who creates a mass movement to build a fancy tower to oppose G-d's rule over the world. It is this fanaticism that is responsible for wars in this coming week's parsha where Nimrod is identified as the king of Sodom. If anything can be learned we as Jews must point to the 7 Noahide laws as the basis for Society to exist. The Torah is a G-D give book written in shorthand and must have an Oral tradition given in the 40 years we were in the desert. Without this Oral tradition we would be like those who murder in G-d's name.

David Aharon Lindzon-LindsayToronto Ontario

January 25, 2010

shalom

Hi friendsI think that as long as Islam exists , the concept of Jihad is impossible to go. Quran and Sunnah of Muhammad are integral to Islam and a muslim, however liberal, will never reject them else he is non-muslim. And I have read quran and hadith many times and a large number of verses in these books are so horrible that promote pedophilia, violence against non-muslims and muslims too( arabs vs non-arabs ), racism, terror tactics frequently employed by muhammad and the two stages of Taqqiya " peaceful conversion " and jihad "militant conversion" both steps have to be employed to destroy non-muslims, something like good cop and bad cop. I think that islam is a menace to society and must be destroyed to enter the next stage of development of human civilisation. I love muslims as much as non-muslims

how right some people are who said : more pious muslims are better terrorists

i am a noahide

amit

July 6, 2009

Islam/The Fate of Israel

Levi Brackman your theories on how a peaceful fundamental ideology would eliminate the war and suffering is brilliant, I agree 100%. I just wish me & my close friends had the chutspah to help your plan be executed. I feel g-d is calling on me, as well as Jews & all riteous people to rally for peace in Israel, peace on Earth. If only it were the 60's, the hippie movement to end the war between U.S. soldiers and the Vietnamese was carried out by thousands with incredible gusto. Unfortunately this war lasted 16 years with millions of casualties. My question is will radical Muslims ever see society, Israel and the west in a different light? Does the Israeli gov't want to order more attacks on the innocent Palestinians in Gaza? If people across the world adopt to peaceful religions based reaching out to others, life could get better, but this doesn't involve politics. Government would have to get involved with this so laws could be passed, action taken. Everyone speaking out isgood

EvanPhiladelphia, PA

April 13, 2009

Peace

HooRah for peace and tranquility in faithful fellowship

Aaron

January 22, 2006

Responses to other posts

Regarding the person who said that "The premise...that Rabbinic Judaism 'softened' the harsh literal meaning of biblical passages is pure Consrevative dogma...Orthodoxy believes that the Bible did not intend these harsh and crude vulgarities to begin with" -

Absolutely true. I think what Rabbi Brackman meant was not that the Rabbis reinterpreted the Torah (i.e. the Torah said and meant this, but the Rabbis reinterpreted to mean that), but rather that the Rabbis correctly interpreted the Torah (using the Oral Law) in ways that did not always follow the apparently obvious (literal) meaning of the Torah. The key words are "interpret" vs "reinterpret".

As for whether the Torah and Judaism desire violence and war, in light of Judaism's stance on fighting evil, I think the important thing is that Judaism sees fighting evil as a necessary but not good thing. We would rather than peace prevail and war be unnecessary. So Judaism see righteous war only as a means to an end (i.e. peace).

Michael Makovi

December 18, 2005

Harmonizing the “Opposing” views

Thanks so much to Robert Godwin for pointing out the apparent discrepancy between the two articles: ‘The Kabbalah of Defeating Terror’ and ‘Replacing Fundamentalism…With What.’

Indeed, as I state in ‘Replacing Fundamentalism,’ the war on terror is a battle between two ideologies: one – terror – that uses chaos as its weapon and the other – Western democracy – that thrives on order.

The article, ‘The Kabbalah of Defeating Terror’ should really state that this war is not “just” a battle between rival ideologies...

Levi BrackmanEvergreen, Colorado

January 7, 2005

Sermons' Opposing Views

In your sermon "Replacing Fundamentalism . . . With What?" you stated that this war has become ". . . a war of opposing ideologies." Freedom and Democracy versus theocratic dictatorship.

Yet a week earlier, in "The Kabbalah of Defeating Terror," you stated just the opposite: "This isn't a battle between rival ideologies. It is a struggle bwtween two types of force -- " A struggle between Order and Chaos.

How do you reconcile such polar views, Rabbi?

Or does the West represent Order, and theocratic dictatorship represent Chaos?

Robert B GodwinLacey, WA/USA

October 22, 2004

If we believe G-d , then we know that He gives all a choice.. But for our circumstances, we would all be tempted to believe evil men instead of our Creator. We are fortunate if we were born with the freedom to choose without deadly consequences, nevertheless, all can choose.

This article was wonderful and articulated my own heartbreak and hope very well. Thank you.

Zakiah

October 20, 2004

I too am convinced that at least some of us - and probably far more than just some - would be religious murderers if we had been taught what the religious murderers are taught. It's not that we don't have free choice. It's that people tend to stay on the paths they find themselves on.

Sarah Weiss

October 20, 2004

Thanks for a very stimulating article

This article made me think long and hard, as it obviously did for many others. I would not disagree at all with Rabbi Brackman's points. I will say, however, that it is this fundamentalism linked to religion that frightens many people away from any form of religion. Many Jewish friends believe that if Orthodoxy prevailed we would have a form of Taliban Afganistan but with chicken soup and bagels.

Orthodox Rabbinic Judaism has worked hard (see Chabad, for just one example) but needs to work even harder to convince non-Orthodox and unaffiliated Jews that a fully observant lifestyle is compatible with personal freedom, creativity and political democracy.